[求助]大全6－18

The value of a product is determined by the ratio of its quality to its price. The higher the value of a product, the better will be its competitive position. Therefore, either increasing the quality or lowering the price of a given product will increase the likelihood that consumer will select that product rather than a competing one.

Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the conclusion drawn above?

(A) It is possible to increase both the quality and the price of a product without changing its competitive position.

(B) For certain segments of the population of consumers, higher-priced brands of some product lines are preferred to the lower-priced brands.

(C) Competing products often try to appeal to different segments of the population of consumers.

(D) The competitive position of a product can be affected by such factors as advertising and brand loyalty.（E）

(E) Consumers’ perceptions of the quality of a product are based on the actual quality of the product.

the answer is E

没觉得E加强啊，看了讨论也没明白

if the consumers are buying products not based on the quality, but something else, then such tactics as lowering price or increasing quality may not necessarily increase the market share of a certain product. consumers may make a buy decision based on the factors such as brandname. so if the consumers do purchase based on quality, the strategy will work.

感觉这个题如果是assumption的话，可能会比较好理解点。